The invention relates to slide rule calculators and more particularly to calculators for accurately and quickly performing the calculations normally done by longhand and based upon the data published nationally by racing publications as "past performance charts". Such charts list the performances for each horse entered in a particular race, in terms of a horse's position in the race at various stages related to the leading horse at the stage, the time at that stage or point of call for the leading horse, and the winning time of the race and particular horse's finish position. The horse's post position, weight carried, track and track condition, as well as the race distance and other information are all printed in a standard tabulation for each projected race, thus giving the past performance history of each entered animal in the race. Such publications as Daily Racing FORM and NEW York Daily Telegraph are widely known for such charts, which are used by professional racing enthusiasts and bettors to calculate the ratings of each horse in a given race to guide them in selecting a probable winner.
The process of winner selection is involved, and many factors must be considered, as will be apparent from the following discussion of the use of the inventive calculator. However, it is not the purpose of this application to teach others to "handicap" horses, but to disclose and claim the inventive calculator by which such calculations may be more easily and accurately done than by previous long hand methods or conventional calculators now in use.
My calculator has as an objective the aiding of knowledgable handicappers to calculate from known data the comparative ratings of competing horses quickly and accurately, without the need to learn new methods or skills. Another objective is to provide expert analysts of horseracing with a hand-held tool usable at the racetrack on the day of the race. A further objective is to provide a calculator which not only adds and subtracts known data to derive a rating from past performance, but which also provides on the calculator data of a standard nature not given in the past performance charts by which the derived rating may be modified for greater accuracy. Another objective is to provide a calculator that gives rating figures in different terms, such as time, track record time, speed rating and an arbitrary rating scale related to the speed rating given in the charts.
These objectives are accomplished by a calculator having three relatively movable parts each scaled and indexed in terms of time and distance, and having tubular date in addition to the time and distance scales.